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Walnut Pricing/Availibility

Sorry I haven't been around lately, the work load has been heavy enough I have little time to do a lot of reading or posting. And this post isn't one that I really enjoy having to write.

The cost of walnut is rising fast! In the past several weeks I have seen a 35% increase in prices for the better grades and the #1 common is starting to rise almost as quickly. #1 common has more defects, knots, splits, warps and wane which is why it is graded as it is. With the last load of the better quality walnut, I still had to throw away about 30% of what we worked on and with #1 common the waste will be closer to 45% or more. I really hate to see the waste hit the dumpster.

What is to blame - A beetle is boring in the tree trunks and on its back it carries a something (don't know what the official name is right now) that leaves the beetles back and starts to bore into the cambium (I hope I got that right) layer of the truck which eventually will kill the tree. It is bad enough that trees that are cut must be saw milled and kiln dried within the same county they are cut in. Prices are rising fast and the quality is dropping as fast. I believe most of the walnut is growing in the mid-west, IL, OH and around that area.

So with that explanation stated, I have to announce a general price increase in the cost of walnut boards as well as now all the walnut boards ordered will be on a made-to-order basis only. I simply can't afford to buy a large enough stock of walnut to fill the shelves.

Other than that, maple has seen some price increases, almost $1.00 per board foot and cherry has held somewhat steady. Good quality wood, like I was accustomed to, is getting somewhat more scarce. But I am making do as I can. The maple shelves are almost full and the cherry shelves are filling up quickly. What walnut I have will be on the shelves this week and my supplier is working to find a better source of walnut for the future. But that isn't looking very promising.

I studied wood-science for some years and yes, the bugs and bacteria is terrible.

"that leaves the beetles back and starts to bore into the cambium (I hope I got that right) layer of the truck which eventually will kill the tree. I"

The cambrium is like the final frontiere for a tree-stem, if you break that the three will call that that area is damaged and create a growth. Buy if that damage is way too big it will die. Remember, a tree is made up from around 95% dead cells.

I love walnut and maple(even that is really expensive in EU). So guys if you need a great endgrainboard, hurry...I wish i had the cash, or a reallt big jointer.

The walnut brick pattern board that I have from you David is amazing. It's unfortunate to hear you're having supply constraint issues with walnut! I really hope it works out and your supplier manages to find wood that meets your expectations.

Are other wood types affected?

I ordered a walnut board on 10/2 and am trying to determine an estimated ship date. I 100% understand the holiday season is approaching and this is an artisan product that takes time. My issue is not with waiting, but simply understanding delivery estimates. What is the current lead time for boards?

I ordered a walnut board on 10/2 and am trying to determine an estimated ship date. I 100% understand the holiday season is approaching and this is an artisan product that takes time. My issue is not with waiting, but simply understanding delivery estimates. What is the current lead time for boards?

Recommend you call Dave at his shop -- that's usually the quickest way to get a response, as he is not on the forums regularly.

I understand and appreciate the concern. The walnut we have been getting lately hasn't been very good. I threw away over 1/2 of the last batch I purchased and the last 16 x 22 board we made ended up with a large void in the center on both sides. It ended up in the trash.

Currently, I have a good stock of maple and cherry boards which are available for immediate delivery. Both cherry and maple are in good supply and the quality is very high. However, walnut is a major problem and looks to be so for the near future.